Supercalafragilisticexpialidocious

"A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes." -Hugh Downs

That was an unexpected break. I guess I just got used to writing about what I was doing, instead of what I was thinking and when I got into the routine of work and staying home for the weekend, I felt like I had less things to talk about. Things are weird like that I think. But I'm resolved to get back to getting my random thoughts out since there are also so many in my head.


Last week I started the week feeling sick. I tried some of those gel swabs that you put in your nose. The idea seemed weird, but I figured why not give it a try, I had nothing to lose. I don't know if it was the placebo effect or what, but I did get better faster I would say. It wasn't too bad and reminded me of the days when I used to use Vicks. I wonder if that stuff actually helps. I never use it much, maybe because when I was younger it seemed to be the solution for everything. I had never had a doctor prescribe Vicks to me, but I did get better and I am here today, so maybe I shouldn't complain.

March Madness. All my teams are out now, but I've enjoyed watching the games. Next year I'm definitely getting a pool, of which this year I would of lost so much money on. HD basketball is so much better than standard definition. The coolest thing was how I read this article on how this would be the year that none of the #1 seeds would make it into the final four. Then we find out that all 4 #1 seeds made it.


I ran into this article last week. I didn't expect to hear that so I figured I'd share. Fighting with spouse good for your health. There is this pregnant man story out too, I'll let ya check that out for yourself. Wasn't there a movie about that in the 80s?

Friday night we had a poker night at Oscars. We have so many people that want to play, but when the day comes, we don't get them to show up. It was 4 of us. Oscar and two of his friends who came up from San Antonio. I had a good time, it was a 10 dollar buy in and I won 20 bucks or so in a 4 person game, so I can't complain. I was frustrated because a lot of the math I once new very well is starting to slip. Like figuring out the odds on a flush draw, or an up and down straight draw. I remembered, just took me longer.

So I move into this new house April 20th. I feel weird saying that because it sounds like I bought a house where in reality I'm just renting. But it is brand new, so that is really cool. I have been thinking about it a lot. From all the logistics like setting up internet, cable, light, gas and water. (Yes that is the order I seem to value things in.) Then the what will go where and how the move is going to go. We have a lot of stuff to move and a lot of mine is still in Edinburg. I need a dresser, but I think that is going to have to wait.

Here is some self talk that was going through my head the other day. I sometimes feel like telling myself, "Are you seriously trying to bottom out and be completely without anything before you decide to become prosperous? Maybe you don't need that kind of motivation. Maybe you have enough motivation with how things currently are. I do give it to you, you did find a way to make it worse than a person with your resources could of made it." Then I think, that isn't very motivating and those types of thoughts just make me want to say, "screw you, I'm not going to change just because you're stating the obvious to me, don't you think I'm quite aware of what is going on," while continuing the self destructive behavior in some sort of defiance. What I am going to do is to forgive myself for getting into this mess instead of letting it eat up at me. It took a lot of ingenuity to get into this type of predicament, most people probably couldn't do it to the extent I did. Forgetting about the big picture and the thought of how the journey is impossible and if possible would take at least 10 years to get out of and just focus on each day, each decision and try to make the best and most responsible decision you can. Sometimes it will mean walking away, others it will mean splurging (I will not sacrifice my happiness just to punish myself for past wrong decisions (investments)). Just keep working hard and it will all fall into place. Once you are doing that, then you can create a plan of action and just stick to it, knowing you will falter, but will just get back on the plan. -- So these are the thoughts that go through my mind as I notice that the whole in my pocket isn't going away and it isn't for lack, but because of decisions I have made.

sometimes trying to avoid something by causing it is the thing you should be avoiding

Bunnies and Eggs

"Employ thy time well, if thou meanest to get leisure." - Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)

This weekend was Easter. Wasn't it in April just a few years ago? I went home to the Valley to celebrate. I left after work on Thursday night. The trip down was usual and I arrived at Erika's late. Its a good feeling though getting there. Erika and I both had Friday off which worked out great. I'll try to be quick.

Friday we went over to Erika's mom's house and watched a movie with her. After that we went to Erika's grandma's get together were they had all kinds of great tasting shrimp. It was a nice family tradition. At night we had a late dinner at Red Lobster. I really like that place and I hadn't been there in a long time. We rented a movie and called it a night. I like the way it feels.


Saturday we went to the mall and I got a haircut. I had been growing my hair out, but didn't end up doing much with it. Erika and I went to Target and purchased games for her family/cousin get together for her cousin Roland who was down. We purchased 3 games. Apples to Apples, Scattergories and Would you rather? In order to be prepared for teaching the games Erika, Jasper, Max and I played each game. (Jasper and Max are our pets.) It was really fun. Interestingly enough, we didn't get to play games later that night, so I was happy we got to do that beforehand. Later on, she taught me how to play Clue, a game I had heard of my whole life yet never played. It seemed interesting and hopefully I'll get to play it soon.



I had a good time at the party. Roland told me about his next trip to Iraq. I decided to test my drinking tolerance and probably had more than I usually do. I had some good political discussions inside and learned a lot about UFC. Erika is a good DJ I have to say. They had this huge Sony flat screen lcd TV. It was so beautiful.


The next morning, I went to my Mom's house for Easter. My grandma, two tios, two aunts, and some cousins came over and we had a bbq. I helped set up the pit, but didn't do any of the cooking. I had only planned to stay a few hours, but I ended up staying longer because a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while were there. This was the second time I really got to spend time with my new niece Celeste. Such a little person,. The drive back was hard, probably my hardest yet. I stopped at a rest stop to actually rest. I laid back and closed my eyes for about 10 mins. There were a lot of reasons and I'm sure the big meal at home didn't help much. I was able to get home safe and was very careful. Maybe I was getting sick.

Here is some really cool news. While I was home I found out that I got approved for the apartment/house Rino and I are going to rent. Our move in date is April 20th. I'm looking forward to having a huge master bedroom. I was even able to find some floorplans online, so I can play with them until it is time to move in. Where will I put my bed? My tv? There is a lot of space, so I'm hoping we will be able to fill it in a way that looks good. Abram will probably move in with us as well. I think it will be fun to live with them. I can't wait until I can actually afford to get a real house that I own. I would want to build it. I would definitely need stairs and secret passage ways. Oh and a jacuzzi.

I didn't really watch any NCAA basketball this weekend, but Cornell and George Mason lost I read. I was more down that they didn't show the games on TV rather than the fact they lost. At least they both made it there. Texas is still in it, so I do have someone to cheer for.

So I collect articles I find interesting. Here are two recent ones:

Money Can Buy Happiness... If You Spend On Someone Else



Barney Frank Calls For Decriminalization Of Small Amounts Of Marijuana


Monday was back to work as usual. I'm glad to be working.

I don't want you to write me a love song because I asked for it.

The Lease

"There is nothing so easy but that it becomes difficult when you do it reluctantly." -Publius Terentius Afer

As I had mentioned, my parents drove me up from the valley on Sunday to come and visit Abram and me. We had a good trip up. Abram took them out as I went to work and we had a BBQ Monday night. I was tired, so I ended up crashing early while they were here. They headed back on Tuesday.


You try to live your life one day at a time, focusing on what is wonderful and great about today and trying to worry about tomorrow. At the same time, you are also trying to plan for tomorrow and know that today's decisions affect tomorrow in many ways. That is a balance I'm always seeking and yet don't have.


Tuesday I looked at a duplex. I've been looking for an apartment starting May 1st to move in with Rino. I'm excited about finding a place. This place was too expensive though so I opted not to apply for it. Then I spent the rest of the week researching and finally narrowed it down to two places once one of my favorites had been taken. I was left with places that cost almost the same amount. Here are the pros and cons. The North Place ("North") was farther north and thus closer to Austin. The South Place ("South") was over 1000 sq feet bigger. So we had to balance size verses location. Rino and I talked about it for hours and we felt that getting more for our money made up for not being 8 miles closer to Austin. The place is only 2.6 miles from where I'm currently living. Thursday I saw the place and knew I wanted it. Since size ended up being such a big difference, I went with size. It isn't too far from Oscar's, so my life won't change much from what is going on now. Did I just put up a map of where I might live? I'll let ya know if we were approved. The master is huge. That other place was nice, but it couldn't help but be smaller because of the land it was on. I think we could of been happy there, but this place will be better for dogs. If we get it, I'll put up pictures.

Obama Race Speech: Read The Full Text I still need to hear this speech, but after reading it, man I would be so proud to have Obama as my president or vice-president. Wow.

I'm getting Good Friday off from work, so I'm off to the Valley to celebrate Easter. I'm looking forward to this trip. I haven't even unpacked from my last trip. I should probably get an oil change soon.

So Cornell, George Mason and Texas are in the NCAA tournament and it starts today. I'll be checking out their games and hopefully see them compete in later rounds. I feel like I'm late to March Madness this year. I hope the games are televised.

a leader

Waking up in the Morning

"Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune." -Walt Whitman

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I forgot to wear green today, but luckily I'm not in school where you actually have to worry about being pinched. So much has happened in the last week, I'll try to give the quick summary recap, but too much has happened to give it much justice. I have to start off by saying that How I Met Your Mother is back on and the St. Patrick's Day episode was just as great as when it left off.


So here is more of my Spring Break. On Tuesday I went home from work to have lunch with Erika. I only had a little bit of time to spend with her, but it was still worth the trip. She waited for our show tickets to get in. She later went shopping at the Outlets in San Marcos. TomTom helped her get a lot of places. After work we went and had dinner at Fridays. I decided to go to this place in San Marcos after, but when we got there it was closed. So instead we went to J's where I got to show her the piano bar. The guy wasn't very good, but the experience was still pretty fun.


Wednesday was another day I had to work. Erika met me at work for lunch and we went to this place by my office. After she went off to Zilker park to read. I'm so impressed with how much she reads. She also got to visit the botanical garden, which I hear is really nice. I made sure to drop by while I was in town making a filing just to say hello. After work we had a quick dinner and had plans to go and see a concert. We ended up spending the night at home together watching tv and relaxing. Sometimes that is just the best way to spend an evening.

Thursday was my final day of work and I was so grateful that someone would still come visit me even though I had to work. After work I rushed home and since we had everything packed, we jumped into the car and drove to San Antonio. Erika bought us tickets to see Cirque du Soleil's "Saltimbanco" at the ATT center. We got there just in time and the show was pretty amazing. I do have to say I was a bit let down that there were so many mistakes, but maybe my expectations have just been so high from all the great performances I've seen before. After the show, we got a hotel room and headed for the Riverwalk. We had dinner at Dicks. I had never been there before, but I was hungry. I was a good sport and it ended up being a good time. I liked it a lot, but I will say that I don't see myself going back anytime soon. After a late dinner, we went to a piano bar and really enjoyed listening to the music. I definitely have to go back there.

Friday morning we took off for our drive down to the valley. We got into town in time to go and visit my sister Eliza and my new niece Celeste. She was born a week early, so just looking at her and knowing that she could still be inside of Eliza's stomach makes you look in awe. I'll be honest, I don't know what a good looking baby versus a regular one looks like. I think you have to wait at least 6 months before you can start making those claims, but everyone thinks their own is the most beautiful child they have ever seen and I think it should always be like that. Since she is my niece of course I thought she was so beautiful. I held Celeste and I have to admit I was a bit scared. She was so small and light. The idea of spending the rest of your life worrying about her every move makes me really admire parents.

Saturday we had plans to eat at Red Lobster for lunch, but this of course never happens because other plans come up. It is almost like tradition now, so I decided to ax the idea and go and pick up some BBQ with some tickets I had purchased. We took it to Eliza's house and ate there. I visited with my family and Bekkah and Jamie were there. Erika came by later and we took the kids to get ice cream. The food was good and it was good quality time with family. After, we went to play cards with Erika's parents and friends. I came out about even, but it was fun. We also saw the fight on pay per view which was awesome. Everyone is always really nice to me.


Sunday brought the end of spring break and having seen time pass by so fast I felt like it couldn't be here already. We spent the morning at Erika's parent's house for her Dad's birthday. He opened presents and we had breakfast. Then we went to her family's and had hamburgers. Then it was time for me to go. Erika dropped me off at home and instead of taking the bus, my parents decided to drive up to Austin to take me and so they could visit with Abram/us. I drove up and it wasn't too bad, but once we got home I was a bit tired. I made good time.

That about sums things up. It is hard to write about things once so much time has past. I'm looking forward to Easter.

I still need to end with some politics:

Check out this article:
Pentagon Makes It Official: No Link Between Saddam & Al Qaeda (why do people still think this?)

And don't forget sports.

In the NCAA tournament I'm excited to hear that Texas, George Mason and Cornell are going to compete. I can't wait to watch. Those are my sentimental favorites. It has been 20 years since Cornell was in the big dance. Cornell Men's Basketball Faces Stanford in NCAA Tournament

I dunno, I'm pretty adorable when I'm litigious

Celeste Nicole Mendoza

"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered." -G.K. Chesterton, "On Running After One's Hat," All Things Considered, 1908

Monday, March 10, 2008 my niece Celeste Nicole Mendoza was born to my little sister Eliza. She was 7 pounds 12 oz. I got to talk to Eliza before she was born, and was so excited to hear from my sister Ana when Celeste was born. I'm a Tio times 7 now. This is a pretty big blessing and I can't wait to meet her this weekend. Lots of new uncles lately.

Erika is out for Spring Break. This weekend I went down to the Valley to visit her. I took the bus. That was an adventure, but sometimes it is nice to get a reality check to really appreciate things. Her parents invited us to the livestock show. I had never been. Oh man, it was so much fun. It was quintessentially Texas. We saw pigs, goats, horses, bulls, a petting zoo and a greased pig run. There was a carnival where I made a promise not to play any games and yet still ended up playing one. At least I was able to win a prize. We saw a pretty amazing hypnotist and had funnel cakes to end the night. There was so much to do and I was very appreciative that I was invited. I think I'm going again next year.

On Sunday, Erika came up to Austin with me to spend part of her Spring break with me. I have to work, but we are making things work. Monday we met up for lunch with my cousin Rino and then went to look at an apartment. I liked it a lot, but didn't like the small bedrooms. I think I should be more picky and the idea of higher rent, deposits and pet deposits do worry me. I'm excited to live with Rino and maybe even possibly Abram.

After work, Erika, Abram, Oscar and I went to this crazy fun center. Oh man I don't think I have had this much fun in a long time. We started the night off a quick bite to eat, then off to rock climbing. That was why I went and I was hoping the rest would be a nice addition, but man my expectations were more than exceeded. I put on the harness and climbed up the first wall. It was an easy one. I think I've done it once before, but nothing like this. I was too scared to jump down, so I just climbed down. Finally after doing that a few times, I just gave out and fell and found out that it wasn't too bad. After a half hour climbing (or trying to) my arms were numb, but I really want to do it again. Abram, Oscar and Erika did very well.

We then got some beers and played shuffle board. After that a few games of pool. You would think that would be a full and fun night, but it had just begun. Then we bowled two games. After that we played video games for an hour with our unlimited games card. Then we ended off the night with a kick ass game of laser tag. (Really had we known how much fun that was, we might of done that all night.) Erika got the second highest score, Marty the lowest. Abram did well too. Just so you can know, running blindly into enemy territory and waiting to get shot and then recharging isn't the best plan of action. By the time we got out it was 20 till 2am. We were exhausted, but man it was fun.

Here is an article I read that I feel was a good wake up call: 10 Ways We Hurt Our Relationships

"You spend like a single person
This was a hard lesson for me to learn — until it broke up a 7-year relationship. When you’re single, you can buy whatever you want, whenever you want, with little regard for the future. It’s not necessarily wise, but you’re the only one who has to pay the consequences. When you are with someone in a long-term relationship, that is no longer a possibility. Your partner — and your children, if there are or will be any — will have to bear the brunt of your spending, so you’d better get in the habit of taking care of household necessities first and then, if there’s anything left over, of discussing with your partner the best way to use it.
This is an increasing problem these days, because more and more people are opting to keep their finances separate, even when they’re married. There’s nothing wrong with that kind of arrangement in and of itself, but it demands more communication and involvement between the partners, not less. If you’re spending money as if it was your money and nobody else has a right to tell you what to do with it, your relationship is doomed."


I'm on my way to be more responsible, but things that should only affect you ends up affecting those around you. My life is bigger than my finances and I know that, but man they can really eat away at ya if you keep thinking about it.

such a big fan of surprises

Agendas

"To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it." -Confucius

On Tuesday Abram and I picked up some pizza and went to Rinos to have a few drinks. It is funny because I catch myself telling some of the same stories over and over. It was the night of the election returns, so I put the news on and watched that, which I know isn't exciting for most people, but I really wanted to see how it all turned out. Now it is time for the pundits to try to make sense of it, either say, Hillary is back, or Obama gots it wrapped up, it is just in the math. I like them both and only want a fair primary, which is why I think they should throw out superdelegates and just go with the delegates that were elected by the people in the primaries. I know this will probably hurt Clinton, but too bad, I mean after 2000, I'll never forget how I felt when Gore was denied the Presidency while winning the popular vote due to a Supreme Court decision. I didn't even vote for him, but it was that moment that I truly became a democrat. I also think Florida and Michigan should re-vote and get their votes counted.




Check out this blog entry about the War:


Prose Before Hos: Every 9.74 days, Iraqi civilians experience 9/11. The charts really help you put the war into perspective.


I think this blog entry really sums it up well:

Cafe Talk: Obama and Clinton supporters must drop out of the race.



Someone asked me about this the other day.

How To: In 12 Seconds Get All 3 Numbers To A Combo Lock -

I notice sometimes when people are mad at me, I have no problem telling them positive stuff and how my intentions were good, or how I may of made a mistake. I don't know how often I get angry at people, but I can't think of a case when I have ever been angry and in the face of positive comments and feedback, plus apologies, say I don't care and choose to stay mad anyway. Usually, I feel like if I get mad, people just get defensive and just get more mad at me. The good thing is that I don't get mad very often as I have always seen it as a lack of self discipline, but I think that mindset of not getting mad has really hurt me. There are times you just need to get upset, I mean it goes away, so why keep it inside and let it fester when venting might be the most productive thing for everyone. The good thing is that I don't have much to be mad about so I've been focusing on the stuff that has made me happy.



Spring Break is coming up. Not for me of course, but I'm going to find a way to celebrate it. Erika will be off and we are in the process of making plans. We have an outline of things to do, but nothing set in stone yet. I'm really looking forward to it.



Today I got some Good News from Maria's Blog. To summarize, she "received the results of [her] last CT scan in February and they are........ great! There was a decrease in size in all [her] affected lymph nodes so the new chemo is working well so far." I was happy to hear that.

I'm not someone you have to give a chance to

Texas Primary

"Occupants of public offices love power and are prone to abuse it."- George Washington , Farewell Address

I voted today in the Texas primary. I had planned to go before work, but woke up late so I went during lunch instead. There was a long line, but only for Democrats. The Republican line was empty. By 9:30am at my precinct 147 democrats voted and only 40 republicans. I did not caucus though because, just like superdelegates, I just think it is silly. I mean, people should just vote and the current system of apportionment is very fair I think and much better than winner take all, but the superdelegate mess bothers me too. It just isn't democratic, no matter if it influences the election or not. Most people I know voted for Obama, and I will surely vote for him for president, but I wanted to give Hillary her one last chance to make her comeback, and I voted for her. It was a hard decision for me and ideally I would like want a Hillary Obama ticket, but not an Obama Hillary ticket. He can help her, but she can only hurt him politically. I would of course take it though. I've voted in a lot of states now, NY, VA, FL and TX. Now it is time to watch the results.

Hillary Clinton on the Daily Show last night:





This weekend I went to see Erika. It has been nice being able to see her so often and this sure beats being 2000 miles away from each other. When I got there, we played cards with her family and friends. The time of course flew by as we made the most of it. She is really thoughtful and great at surprises. My favorite moment was dinner at this nice French restaurant we had never been to. It made me want to travel to Europe. We later had drinks with my sister Ana and Rick on Saturday night. I really liked that bar, they had some good music. After attending a birthday party for a little cousin of hers, and checking out her family calendar that her and her mom put together to see what empty slots there were, it was time for me to drive back to Austin. Back to work.

So I still can't get other this myspace v blogger amount of people that I get visiting. More people find it easier to go to Myspace and view my scaled down version, than just save my site as a bookmark. I can't add as much video on that site (well I probably could if I tried harder.) In any case, I still don't get many comments or kudos anyway. Maybe I should just blog exclusively there instead.

Here is some cool info I just learned. ABC will air five originals of Grey's beginning April 24. I feel like I have no understanding when my shows are starting or ending, when the season begins, ends, its all a blur to me it seems. Too many breaks and weeks off and well the strike probably complicated a few things there too. The Sarah Connor show had its series finale this week. I didn't think I would like it, but it is pretty good.


As a Christian I worry that the ones that have power set a bad example by those actually trying to follow Jesus's good hearted teachings. The most judgmental of Christians have been the people that upset me the most because they not only distort the word of God, but they make others not want to be Christians because of their example. Speaking of examples, Evangelical Christians talk so much about family values and not having sex before marriage and how gay people are evil (hate the sin not the sinner they may say, but they still hate the sinner.) This may be old knowledge, but I didn't know they too have one of the highest divorce rates of any religion, including people who don't believe in God. Way to set a great example. Way to live your life in a way that inspires others to learn the word of the Lord. That kind of hypocrisy bothers me a lot. So one article I read discussed the reasons behind Christian Evangelicals having higher divorce rates. (fyi, the Bible Belt also has some of the highest teenage pregnancy rates, but that is for another day.) So the arguments I heard were:

1. Christians are generally younger when they marry the first time.
2. Christians are less likely to have pre-marital counseling than non-Christians.
3. Christians tend to view their faith as protecting their marriage from divorce.
4. Christians are more likely to be ignorant about the problems that can develop within a marriage.

Sadly, I think that even though these are generalizations, they highlight some reasons that might explain this phenomenon. Then again I have seen a lot of happy Christian couples as well, but these stats still interested me.

loyalty